10 Simple Ways to Attract Customers to Your Small Business

Let me guess: You want to learn how to attract customers and have them find YOU. 

But… maybe you’ve tried strategies in the past that just didn’t work. 

Or maybe you’re a brand new business owner and you want to learn proven methods that will help you scale as quickly as possible.

Sound like you? 

Keep reading… That’s what we’re going to talk about in this article.

If you’re having a hard time…

• Appealing to your target audience
• Hitting revenue goals
• Automating lead generation

…those are ALL things you can change.

Specifically, here are the steps we’re going to cover:

Get referrals

Build your search engine optimization 

Create a Google Business profile

Use content marketing

Find affiliates 

Build an email list

Show off your testimonials

Create better posts on social media

Tap into paid ads

Use engaging video

1. Get referrals

Listen: Referrals are a goldmine for getting new customers. 

Why? 

Because people who’ve worked with you or bought from you in the past might know people who also need what you offer. 

And according to research, 93% of customers trust personal recommendations more than ads. 

Okay, so how can you get referrals? 

If you’re starting from scratch and don’t have an audience yet, tap into your network first. 

Without being sales-y, let people who might be interested know that you’re starting a business to help [blank] with [blank]. 

At this point, don’t try to sell anything. 

What you want to do instead is offer so much value that people will WANT to buy from you later. 

For example, if you’re starting a service-based business, you could offer a free coaching or consulting call to give people a taste of what they can expect. 

And here’s the thing…

You can automate your referral process to make it really easy. Just send a follow-up email when someone buys from you to ask for referrals (and don’t forget to offer some incentive, like a 10% commission).

2. Build your search engine optimization

Wondering what THE most scalable and profitable way to have clients come to you is? 

Search engine optimization (SEO). 

Basically, SEO helps drive traffic to your site – without you having to pay for ads or reach out to people yourself. As you can imagine, this is incredibly valuable. 

And the thing is, over 80% of traffic comes from Google alone. Which means? 

Building an SEO-optimized site is the key to having more people find you through major search engines. 

So, how do you do that?

There are a few steps to take, like:

• Using the right keywords 
• Posting optimized content
• Building high-quality links

Not sure how to do that? Don’t worry, I wrote an article covering organic traffic in more detail right here.

Note, though, that SEO is an advanced strategy and the best time to invest in SEO is when you already have a few clients.

In the meantime, you can build your local SEO (an easier route to get clients through Google). How? That’s what we’ll look at next.

3. Create a Google Business profile

If you have a business with a local audience, setting up a Google Business profile is a smart move. Why? Because it can help people discover you when they’re looking for businesses like yours. 

So, for example…

Let’s say you run a copywriting business. In that case, people who are searching for local copywriters online will be able to find you thanks to your profile on Google. (However, you don’t need to limit yourself to a local audience – but this strategy can bring in extra clients in your vicinity.)

(Find out how to create a Google Business profile here.)

4. Use content marketing

Effective content marketing goes hand-in-hand with the SEO I talked about earlier. And it’s a POWERFUL way to attract more customers quickly. 

Why? 

Because by appearing on relevant podcasts or being featured in publications, you can tap into people’s established audiences. 

That’s exactly what I’ve done in the past, and it directly resulted in more leads and sales.

But here’s the thing…

You don’t have to pitch to huge publications or podcasts to get traction. Even small audiences can help you grow, especially niche audiences. 

So, do a Google search for relevant platforms you could pitch to. 

And once you’ve found ones you like, reach out to the editor or podcaster and offer to share your expertise with their audience.

For example, here’s a script you can tweak to fit your needs:

“Hi [Name],

I’m [Your Name], and I [mention your relevant background/experience that would make you an ideal guest]. I’d be happy to come on as a guest and share [relevant topic] with your audience. Here are a few topic ideas that might resonate with your [listeners/readers]:

• [Topic suggestion 1]
• [Topic suggestion 2]
• [Topic suggestion 3]

If you’re interested, let me know and we can discuss the details.

Warmly,

[Your Name]”

As you can see, the process is simple. 

Just keep this in mind…

When you’re pitching, always put yourself in the other person’s shoes.

So, ask yourself, “If I were them, what kind of guest would I want to invite? What kind of topics would I want to cover?” 

And then use that information to write compelling pitches that will make it easy for them to say yes.

5. Find affiliates

In a nutshell, affiliate marketing is when people who have established audiences promote your products or services to their fans on your behalf. 

And remember…

Like with content marketing, you don’t have to collaborate with people who have huge audiences. 

What’s more important than size is relevance. 

Here’s what I mean by that: 

It’s better to find affiliates who have a small audience of really interested potential customers versus a huge audience of people who aren’t particularly interested in what you offer. 

Okay, but what’s the downside to going this route? 

You do have to pay an affiliate commission. And the amount you pay can vary a lot, depending on what your product or service is. 

So, for example, high end services are usually 10%, but products (like online courses) are usually around 50%-75%. 

The good news? Affiliates can help you attract customers without any work on your part, so even if the affiliate commission you pay is high, you’ll still be making money relatively passively. 

6. Build an email list

Look: There are plenty of ways you can attract customers these days, but building an email list remains an ideal way to build long-term relationships with your audience. 

And that’s because you OWN your email list. 

With social media platforms, for example, you don’t have that kind of control. 

Sure, you can use social media effectively (and I’ll talk about that in a minute). But if a platform suddenly decides to change its algorithm or shuts down, you’ll have to start over. 

Okay, but… how can you get people to sign up for your email list? 

There are a bunch of different ways. You could include a call-to-action in a guest post, a podcast appearance, ads, etc. 

The key here is to offer VALUE.

Remember: People want things that benefit them. If you can show that you can help them with their problems, they’ll WANT to give you their email and keep learning from you.

I talk more about how to do email marketing the right way in this video:

7. Show off your testimonials

According to research, over 90% of consumers look up testimonials when they’re considering a purchase. 

And that makes sense: People want to know that if they invest in your product or service, they’ll get results.

As a business owner, use this to your advantage. 

You can include testimonials wherever it makes sense, including:

• Your website 
• Sales pages
• Promotional emails 

You want to build trust with prospective customers and show that YOU can help them.

Alright, but… what if you don’t have any testimonials yet? 

Don’t worry, everyone starts somewhere. 

Even if you’ve never been paid for your product or service (so far!), you can still get testimonials. 

For example, if you have a service-based business, you can offer some small result in exchange for a review. 

And if you’re selling a physical product, it’s the same deal: You can offer a small product or sample for free to get your first reviews.

(If you need more guidance on this, I go into a lot more detail on how to get testimonials here.)

8. Create better posts on social media

Social media CAN be an effective way to get clients. But you have to use it the right way. If you just post content without having a method in place, it’ll be tough to get traction. 

So, what IS the right way? 

I like to use the formula H.O.T. to create effective content. 

Here’s what that means:

H stands for Headlight: In other words, create an attention-grabbing caption or opener. How? You can do this in a few different ways, like with a question or thought. Just keep it short so it’s easy to read.

O stands for Organization: To keep your posts organized, they need to have structure. So, no matter what your post is about, have a headlight, your point, and finish with a call-to-action. Having this structure will help you know what to include in every post you make. 

T stands for Tasty: What do I mean by that? Think about this: No one likes reading boring posts… EVEN if they’re really valuable. So, find a balance between sharing content that’s useful and sharing content that’s also funny or unique. 

Want to learn more? I talk more about social media marketing here: 

9. Tap into paid ads

Here’s a disclaimer: If you’re a new business owner, I don’t recommend using paid ads right away (and I’ll explain why in a second). 

With that said, they CAN help you scale eventually. In fact, ads helped me grow my business to seven figures, so I know firsthand how effective they can be.

Alright, here’s what you should have in place to create ads that’ll work:

• A clear idea of who your audience is (and what they need/want that you offer)
• Attention-grabbing copy and visuals

Okay, so why do I recommend waiting until you have some experience before trying paid ads?

Because if you’re just getting started and you don’t really know who you’re trying to attract yet, it’ll be really tough to create targeted ads that speak to the right people. 

So, first, get some business experience under your belt. If you’re a coach, work with a few clients and do market research to pinpoint who you’re going to help. 

And once you’ve nailed down who your audience is and what their pain points are, ads will be a lot easier to create.

10. Use engaging video

People love watching videos, so take advantage of that to attract customers. 

In fact, that’s what I do: I put out a lot of valuable content on my YouTube channel to build trust with my audience, which is the first step to driving leads (and ultimately making more sales). 

So, what kind of content should you create?

Here’s what I recommend: 

Instead of just copying what other content creators are doing, do some research to find out what questions your target audience has that you can answer. 

If you’re not sure, join Facebook groups in your niche and ask people directly. 

This is a great way to go because it’s a win-win: By asking questions, you get valuable insight into your target audience, and they get the answers they need.

I talk more about YouTube videos here: 

Next steps 

So, there you have it! Now you know what steps you can take to attract customers to your business the right way… 

WITHOUT having to work all the time or play games that don’t get results (like buying social media followers).

Okay, so you’re ready to finally hit your business goals. But… what if you need more guidance as you scale? 

Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. My free masterclass that will help you tap into a proven system for attracting clients consistently.

Read more:

How to Build an Evergreen Sales Funnel

How to Learn to Sell Anything Online

How to Deal with Difficult Clients